Already renowned for her beauty, the small leaves swirling in the wind towards her made the atmosphere even more mysterious.

“Look at this. Commander Lucia. The sky is so beautiful…….”

“More than that, what is it?”

As she interrupted him, could it be a delusion that, even with the sound of the fountain’s water, it felt as if the air had suddenly dried out?

Lucia, taking a fleeting glance at the clock tower, paid no attention to the momentarily frozen Airen.

Watching her, the Crown Prince turned his head with a dark and lonely face, as if all kinds of misfortune had befallen him.

And as if someone would hear, he grumbled loudly.

“Ah, too much. Too much. Running and sweating like this for the first time in my life, can’t we talk about the things that have been piling up…….”

“…….”

Even as he turned his head, Lucia, with her empty eyes, still looked annoyed.

The one who had been fussing finally pointed aggressively at his face with his finger.

“Commander! Really?! In this weather, at this time, on this handsome face! Isn’t that annoyed attitude really too much?! Besides, I, huh? Rescued you from there!”

Listening to his words, it seemed there was a reason he had brought Lucia all the way to this corner.

Too flashy a lure to someone like Lucia, who does not give time to others, would raise suspicion.

So the cozy scenery of this garden, even the fantastical time of the setting sun.

Before going on a business trip together, it was his small plan to ease the atmosphere with a trivial story.

However, it was the 90yearold monk, Lucia, who abruptly broke that flow.

To her, this fantastical scenery was just a warning sign of school ending time.

“Anyway, there’s no gap. Come.”

Finally, what he carelessly handed over with both hands was a scroll, its ribbon sealed by magic in a peculiar way.

As the operator, when she untied the ribbon, the paper unraveled, revealing the words.

‘Southern region, boundary line of the Iris Count’s territory, extermination of monsters around Henken Village….’

And under those words, the identity and designated inn, and the password were written.

But Lucia’s expression was not good after reading the entire content.

This mission was ultimately a task that would leave the accommodation vacant for a week due to distance.

Then, the observant Crown Prince Airen hurriedly pulled a scroll from his inner pocket.

“Commander. If distance is the problem, there is a way. I can shorten it to 3 days!”

“……Hmm.”

Though using the scroll meant several shortrange teleports and was troublesome, 3 days wasn’t bad.

Just as Lucia was about to accept, someone suddenly appeared beside her, distorting space.

Then the busy person who was about to activate teleportation again sighed as if drained of energy when he met Lucia’s eyes.

“Ha, I thought I was going crazy looking… Oh, no. You two are here.”

“Commander Leon?”

At his appearance, Airen tilted his head, but then his intelligent mind seemed to fit the puzzle pieces together, and he furrowed his brow.

“No? It’s my task!”

“No, how could Your Highness, the Crown Prince, go that far? I will go.”

The cautious Crown Prince and the naturally cheerful Leon.

Standing between them, Lucia rolled her eyes as she felt an unusual energy flowing from them.

“That’s it, you shouldn’t have refused! It’s already late. I’ve received a mission from the minister too. Besides, who wouldn’t prefer me, young and handsome, to go along? Right, Commander Lucia?”

Airen pointed to his name engraved on the sealed ribbon, smiling as if even a petal would wilt.
It was a smile so captivating that one would suspect what it was usually used for.

“If the guy says he will go, you should step back, Your Highness.”

Irene remembered what the Grand Duke had said, but as always, she had no intention of listening to anyone’s words.

The reason she came here in the first place was to be leisurely with Lucia, who never showed her face at any events, and moreover, spending three days on a business trip with her was almost a miraculous time.

But the one who didn’t want to miss this opportunity for similar reasons, was Leon.

He rolled his eyes for a moment and spoke to Lucia, looking straight at her.

“Stonehenge, we’ll use it. Then this mission will be possible overnight. What do you think?”

“……!”

‘It’s better than sending her with another man, even if the time is reduced.’

In reality, even Leon, the magical general, would have a hard time obtaining permission to use Stonehenge, a magical tomb used to move soldiers during war.

But if it’s divided into what’s possible and what’s not, it’s easy.

In the end, cunning Leon threw a bait that Lucia couldn’t refuse.

And the bewildered crown prince, caught off guard by this unexpected move.

It seemed as if the choice had now returned to the companion, and both their gazes were fixed on Lucia.

“Commander Lucia, you know I’m sick, right? Then this mission could be the first and the last for me…….”

“If you’re sick, why don’t you lie down on that bench over there, Your Highness.”

“…….”